On the transition from the Silicon to the Tanana Valley, from urban to rural life, and from working in industry to being a full-time student to working in academia. If you see your name or photo on this blog and want it removed, please let me know and I will do so!

nopin

Tuesday, July 25, 2017

One of my outreach activities is visiting local schools with KidWind kits. I give them a short lecture on energy, then renewable energy, then wind energy in particular. Then I have them cut wind turbine blades out of card stock and mount them into plastic hubs. We connect them to a multimeter, hold the model turbines in front of a fan, and see how much power they make in the "wind".

I love kids in 40-minute doses! My hat's off to teachers who do this 40+ hours per week. If I were a K12 teacher, I'd probably be in danger of alcoholism.

In the midst of this chaos, this particular teacher stepped back, smiled at all of the screaming mess around her, and sighed happily. She turned to me and said, "Don't you just LOVE this? Kids getting all excited about science?" And I had to admit that I loved the *concept* but not so much being present for the *implementation*. However, I am truly grateful that I had the privilege of seeing her joy. Clearly, that is her thing, and the world is an indescribably better place for teachers like her!

Wednesday, July 19, 2017

Tuesday, July 18, 2017

1) Our neighbors' dog, who looks like a puppy, frequently hangs out with us. We don't know them that well, and I'm not sure whether this is okay, or whether this is some kind of Alienation of Affection theft. She is adorable, Starbuck and Cricket don't mind her, and she loves bellyrubs.

About Me

I'm an engineer and I'm okay, I sleep all night and I work all day.
I am a passionate, creative individual who thinks outside the box in response to paradigm shifts when my cheese is moved.
I expand to six times my normal size when placed in water.
Mostly harmless.

A few words on commenting

1) Your First Amendment rights do not apply here. You may tease or criticize ME, but if you make hurtful comments at or about any other commenters, or about anyone else who is not a public figure, I will delete your comment.

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